Why Soldiers are on the location of Mining Companies in the 4th Republic, why it should be continued

The initial deployment of Miiutary personnel in the Fourth Republic in the locations of Large Scale Mining Companies which are members of the Ghana Chamber of Mines was the master plan of the author of this article, Major Mohammed Bogobiri in 2001, when he was the Officer Commanding of the Second Battalion, Takoradi Rear Details and thus a temporary member of the Western Regional Security Council (REGSEC).

This idea was sold to the REGSEC to help dominate the Western Region to deal with security challenges in the Western Region especially in the Mining towns when President Candidate-elect Mr JA Kofour took over on 07 January 2001. Hence, it was aimed at supporting the Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces to Uphold, Preserve, Protect and Defend the 192 Constitution in other language in Aid to Civil Power or Authority to restore and maintain law and order. The below details are provided as verifications for this assertion. .

The National Presidential Election December in 2000, saw Presidential Candidate JA Kofour as the winner of both the normal election on the 07 December 2000 and the Runoff on 28 December 2000. Ghana’s especially the Western Region’s Daylight suddenly changed into Darkness due to almost a state of anarchy due to many fronts of security problems.

These security challenges included civil and social/labour unrests, vigorous activities of small scale miners termed in local parlance as galamasey operators especially from the stables of both the NDC and NPP, banditry activities especially the activities of armed robbers, rapists (including the raping of the wife of an expatriate staff who was from Europe and then working with a Mining Company, precisely GMC, Tarkwa). Hence, eruptions of violent crimes that needed swift and brutal action to curb them was reason. The deployment of the Military was therefore a necessary evil.

This was so, because beside the banditry activities. were activities of gold and cocoa smugglers coupled with the usual activities from the thugs of a wining political party, similar to what happened and is happening by the alleged thugs of the NDC during the transition and the period of formation of the new Administration of the second coming of His Excellency Mr JD Mahama respectively.

This state of affairs normally gives the impression of as if a military coup has occurred. This seemed to be so, due to the looting and seizure activities, which were injected in the Fourth Republic, by thugs of NPP during the first regime of President Kofour to enjoy the spoils or prize or booty, bounty of war. This has become a national habit and must be eradicated.

It is very important to take a walk down the memory lane for the benefit of younger and future generations. Prestea Gold Ltd (PGL) was a past Mining Company under the auspices of the State Gold Mining Corporation (SGMC) between 1962 and 1994. But as part of the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) and Economic Recovery Program (ERP) under the auspices of the IMF/World Bank during the regime of the PNDC, PGL was placed on the Divesture Implementation Committee and sold in 1994 to Barnato Exploration (Barnex) of Johannesburg Investment Group of South Africa.

A mining lease agreement for not lease than 30 years was signed in the Fourth Republic, on 20 May 1996 between the Government of Ghana and Barnex Ghana. The Agreement of the Mining lease to Barnex covered the Prestea Underground Mine and the associated surface Mining Concessions, including Calcine, Tailings etc of SGMC through PGL.

Barnex spent an initial amount of over 22 Million Dollars in the acquisition of PGL and developmental works. But Barnex encountered a very serious problem in 1998 with the Underground Mine of PGL. Barnex therefore laid off the Staff after paying severance Award to them.

Unknowingly to Barnex, her severed staff (the mineworkers) invested their huge severance award or money in Small Scale Mining in the lease o Barnex and with the support of the then NDC Administration in 1998 and by that illegally changed the name to from PGL to Prestea Gold Resources (PGR).

In the same year of 1998, Golden Star Bogoso Mine Ltd was facing a serious threat of a depletion of oxide gold ore (depletion of the gold ore reserves in the Bogoso Concession). So, unknowingly to the then Administration of Ghana and her associated illegal miners of PGR, Barnex came to the rescue of Golden Star Bogoso Mine and offered her with 70% interest of the Prestea Gold Project, This was consummated by shares deal and a payment of not less than 10million US Dollars Deal between Barnex and Golden Star Bogoso Mine to be paid by Golden Star Bogoso Mine.

The deal with Barnex was to enable Golden Star Bogoso Mine to operate the disused Prestea Underground Mine under the name New Century Mines (NCM), Prestea through an initial care and maintenance system, whilst conducting Surface Mining in the Prestea Concession to help finance future underground mining of NCM.

As stated above, this was not known to the then NDC Administration of President Rawlings. So when in 1999, the illegal miners who were ex-workers of PGL under Barnex and were mostly cadres of the Workers Defence Committee (WDC) and Peoples Defence Committee (PDC) in the era of the PNDC which metamorphosed into the NDC, had a hint of this secret pact in 1999, they hinted President Rawlings, so the Government of Ghana got annoyed and abrogated the Mining Lease of Barnex. This resulted in an impasse of International dimension. Please, Google for Ghana Targets Barnex Deal as well as Google for Gold star Resources signs Prestea Deal with Barnex to authentic these assertions

Without reaching amicable resolution on the impasse between Barnex and the Government of Ghana especially a payment of the Compensation, the lease was not only abrogated by granted to third parties by the then Government of Ghana in 1999 as against the interest of Golden Star Bogoso Mine..

It envisaged that the then NDC Administration still maintained, the alliance between the PNDC in the revolution era and the ex-workers of SGMC who virtually became workers of PGL which became the assets of Barnex may be to gain their support for the then upcoming National Election in December 2000. So, with the support of the then Hon MP of the area on the ticket of the NDC, the Minerals Commissions issued Mining License to the ex-workers at the blind side of Barnex.

Consequently, with the support of the then Government, the ex-workers trespassed the Mining Lease of Barnex when they took over the operation of PGL under the new name of Prestea Gold Resources (PGR) and unreasonably invested their severance award packages as were paid by Barnex into the operation of PGR and they attempted to revamp a very costly underground mine. Their operation of the Underground Mine became unsuccessful.

So, in order for the workers to recoup their investments, they and some people mostly women of Prestea working under barons ,with the Mining License operated surface mining through Galamasey (Small Scale Mining) operations with simple tools like pick axes, spades etc under the authority of the Mining License so issued by the then Government.

This mining activities of the ex-workers covered by a Mining Right, from the Government was illegal because the abrogation of the Mining Lease of PGL which then secretly belonged to Golden Star Bogoso or openly belonged to Barnex was not completed because the State of Ghana was cash trapped so, the then Government could not pay a compensation of about 20 Million US Dollars to Barnex.

Hence, due to the illegal act by the then Government of Ghana (NDC2 regime) a looming potential judgment debt of not least than 20Miion Dollars reared its ugly head and threatened a cash strapped Government of Ghana by December 2000. This was at the time NDC2 was defeated by the NPP1 led by Presidential Candidate-Elect, Hon JA Kofour in the 2000 Presidential Election.

Another disturbed problem was that the Administration of the Government of Ghana in 1999 also granted a Mining Right in the Concession or Mining Lease of Barnex to Prestea Sankofa Gold Ltd, a Mining Company which was a subsidiary of GNPC for mining the mining Tailings (spent gold or waste) at the Tailings Dam and Calcine material created by the mining activities of SGMC or PGL on the concessions of PGL as well as gold ore from the emerged Galamasey operators. Hence, the above demo a very complex bizarre act in the Mining Industry, committed by the then Government of Ghana.

So, Barnex-Ghana was forced to invoke the Arbitration Clause in the Lease and Mining Agreement. So the powers of the International Court of Competent Jurisdiction for Arbitration was invoked by Barnex in 2000 to protect her Mining Right otherwise a payment of compensation of about 20 million Dollars, hence, a judgment debt payable by Ghana was awarded to Barnex.

Unfortunately, the payment of the judgment debt was not done before the handing over to the new regime of President Kofour on 07 January 2001. The end result of the abrogation of the deal affected the interest of Golden Star Bogoso Mine. Bogoso Mine was sued by the ex-workers in the Tarkwa High Court with the Government of Ghana (Office of the Attorney General) and the Ex-workers represented by their Lawyer who doubles as their Hon MP, then on the ticket of NDC Party, incidentally joint as part of the Plaintiff.

Meanwhile, Golden Star Bogoso through Col Disu (Rtd) and Mr Richard Gray then the MD of the Mines briefed myself and later the members of the REGSEC on the state of affairs including, the financial situation at Bogoso Mines that it was seriously dwindling or was very precarious (insecure) so the Company could not guarantee the continuance of the Workforce.

At the same period, both the incoming Gold field Tarkwa then as new entrant in Tarkwa and outgoing Ghana Australian Gold (GAG) who were then the owners of the whole Tarkwa Concession and mines, now shared between Goldfields Tarkwa and AngloGold Ashanti Iduaprim Tarkwa had a serious problem with the Staff of GAG, as inherited by Goldfields Ghana who threatened to burn the Mine for refusal to pay severance awards to them due to change of ownership of GAG to Goldfields. So, the REGSEC had to arrange for a helicopter which lifted soldiers from 2BN under my command to the site and we successfully prevented the burning/the destruction of the Company’s assets, and secured the site pending settlement of the impasse by the REGSEC.

Unfortunately for GAG Tarkwa, now Goldfields Tarkwa but fortunately for the Staff payment of severance award was enshrined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) as duly signed by both parties, hence Goldfields Ghana Ltd, Tarkwa was made by REGSEC to pay the severance award to the Staff. So, I deployed or inserted some of my personnel from 2BN who saved the assets of Goldfields Tarkwa from destruction at Goldfields for OPERATION CALM LIFE.

During, the settlement of the impasse at the Tarkwa Mines, REGSEC had intelligence on the setting of ablaze of the Palace of the Chief of Awudia a suburb of Tarkwa, by his people especially the youth. his was so because of the employing immigrants instead of the indigenes of the area as a part of a deal in a service contract granted by Goldfields, Tarkwa to the Chief for his people to be employed and to be paid very high rate for their contract services.

But due to greed, the Chief brought immigrants and employed them, to be paid very low rates. This angered the youth of the area and made them to burn the Palace. So, the personnel of 2BN. who I inserted at the location of Goldfields Tarkwa had to rush to the area to support the Police to rescue the Chief and others.

As stated above there was a sudden upsurge of banditry activities and other labour unrest in the Western Region especially in the Wassa West District. Erupted, were a wave of armed Robbery activities with AngloGold Ashanti Iduaprim, Tarkwa and other places as victims, cases of raping including the raping of the wife of an expatriate staff at Ghana Manganese Company Nsuta near Tarkwa.

Thus, the were state of confusion which led to disorder in Prestea during the first 3months of a cash strapped new regime of President Kofour. So, he was therefore forced to seek for a bailout from the IMF, World Bank and the International Financial Communities through the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) Initiative, this was at the time of the judgment debt of about 20 Million Dollars awarded to Barnex.

The above serious security challenges that confronted the REGSEC of Western Region vis a vis a very poor logistics state of the Ghana Armed Forces at that time of HIPEC Ghana,, made me to think outside the box and came out the decision to enter into discussions with Reps of then all of the Large Scale Mining Companies for full scale Admin and logistics support so that I can deploy soldiers in their location as part of operations to restore law and order through a system of static deployment at key installations, foot and mobile patrols to dominate the Sites and catchment areas and which my to some extent reduce the state of illegal mining activities within their concession and activities of Small Scale Miners outside their concessions.

So, this gave birth to the Bogobiri’s (meaning the fighting spirit) Master Plan to support Civilian Authority or Power at no or low cost to the State but at a very high or bleeding cost to the Mining Companies. The Reps from the Ghana Chamber of Mines included Mr Amponsah Boakye (now a seasoned Labour Consultant) then the HR and Admin Manger of AngloGold Ashanti Iduaprim in Tarkwa, Mr Yerankyi of Goldfields Tarkwa, and Mr Adjei Mensah then HR and Admin Manager (he is now the Hon MP for Daboase area on the ticket of the NDC) through his Rep, one Essah, then HR Superintendent of Bogoso Mine.

They were briefed on the state of logistics constraints of the 2Bn Unit, so they were urged to provide accommodation, three meals, and patrol vehicles with enough fuel. All of these requirements at the cost of the Mining Companies in addition to the payment of then 2,000.00 old Cedis (now GHC20.00) per day as living allowance which should be for me to make a case to the REGSEC for insertion of Military Personnel and Police personnel in the location of the Mining Companies for OPERATIONS CALM LIFE Duties and thus would afford some form of protection to the Mining Companies and their Catchment areas.

They wholeheartedly bought my master plan. So I came out with my Battle plan or orders with personnel to be provided by the Takoradi or 2 Garrison (Army from 2Bn then under my command, Naval Base Sekondi, Ghana AirFoce Takoradi and the Ghana Police with me as the Task Force Commander and presented the plan to the members of REGSEC and briefed the Chairman of the REGEC, this was bought by them as a very good one.

Coincidentally, Alhaji Asuma Banda, through my good friend Mr Atiemo, then the Chief Director at the Presidency, then at the Osu Castle, Accra, Alhaji made a cash donation of 50,000,000.00 old Cedis (equivalent to GHC50,000.00) to the Western Regional Coordinating Council for OPERATION CALM LIFE to deal with the upsurge of armed robbery and other violent crimes. Ghana COCOBOD, also loaned more than three land rovers to 2Bn for anti-cocoa smuggling operations and arranged with the Total Fuel Stations to provide fuel for the operations

Based on good signs of hopes to deal with the challenges of the REGSEC, the then Chairman of the REGSEC quickly organized an emergency meeting of the REGSEC for the use of the troops of the Air force Station, Takoradi, and Naval Base Sekondi to beef up the strength of 2BN for a joint military and Police Operation, so that 20 Soldiers plus 10 Policemen making a platoon to be inserted in the location of each of the Mining Companies in the Ex-Wassa West District.

The master plan included engagement of some cross-sections or key elements in the catchment areas of the affected Mining Companies areas to tell them, of an intend to deploy Military personnel for OPERATIONS CALM LIFE to protect their life and assets due to the spate of the violent crime.

It was approved by the REGSEC, so based on the recommendations in my document, the REGSEC organized Stakeholders engagement in Tarkwa under the auspices of the then Wassa West District Assembly at Tarkwa.

So the members of the Western Regional Security Council engaged the relevant key Stakeholders, these included the then DCE and Presiding Member of the Ex-Wassa West District, the then Tarkwa Divisional Police Commander, the then BNI Officers for the Ex-Wassa West District, the then Hon MP namely Hon Aubbin, the Chiefs, Commercial and Financial Houses, Contractors, Faith Base Organizations of the affected areas of Ex-Wassa West District and the Mining Companies in the Ex-Wassa West District and Bibiani).

The stakeholder engagement culminated in the buy in or acceptance by the stakeholders, thankfully, this was the prayer/plea of the Western Regional Security Council for the insertion of Soldiers and Policemen in the locations of the Large Scale Mining Companies, to deal with the banditry activities which confronted the citizens in the Region. Thus ensured social cohesion and Regional or national cohesion, economic and social development of the affected areas and the protection of the environment from activities of Small Scale Miners, who scattered whenever they saw or heard the noises of the Security trucks

The Mining Companies and the stakeholders were briefed that the troops were to demonstrate visible presence through the organizations of mobile patrols to the catchment areas thus within their Concessions as well.

Later on, the Large Scale Mining Companies were met and briefed separately that the troops were not for full scale anti Galamasey operations but they may stop and remain in their vehicles or walk around at major areas of Galamasey activities for at least one hour which may put fear of God in them to scatter and thus made the operations to be somehow cost effective to them.

To demo their pleasure or the acceptance of the deployment of the military personnel, most of the Stakeholders at the meeting collectively paid over then 20,000,000.00 Old Cedis (now GHC20,000.00) into the Account of Regional Coordinator Council as their willing contributions for the initial cost on the insertion of the troops in the location of the Mining Companies.

In addition to the participation in making, some of the cash donations, the Mining Companies, in order not to be accused by some people that the Mining Companies brought soldiers to terrorize them, so they proclaimed at the Stakeholders meeting their acceptance for the placement of the Policemen and Soldiers in their locations and the provision of accommodation, daily allowances, three square meals per day, and fuel for patrol cars at very huge draining cost as part of their contribution towards regional and national security to ensure enabling atmosphere for general economic activities.

Hon Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, then Chairman of REGSEC (the immediate past CEO of COCOBOD) thanked all the stakeholders for their active participation in the meeting and for their kind support for the planned deployment of soldiers and the police personnel.

Due to the support of the Taskforce, calm was restored and the NPP Administration and their Parliamentary Candidate in a subtle manner managed to divide the front of the ex-workers of Barnex or PGL and the people of Prestea and thus wooed some of them to their side and won a Bye election in the Constituency of Prestea Huni Valley due to the involvement of the then MP from the stable of the NDC in a fatal motor accident on his way to the Court.

With the administration of President Kofour in control, the Bogoso Mine accepted to bail out the Government of Ghana and paid the judgment debt and thus was granted the Mining Right (a lease agreement) but some of ex-workers as sympathizes of the NDC stood on their ground not to allow the deal to be realized on the ground. So they kept on kicking against and delayed the Public Hearing by EPA for the Environmental Impact Assessment Report with related remedies including Community Social Responsibilities to be communicated to the chiefs and people of the affected areas.

So, the REGSEC with me as one of the principal persons made several trips to Prestea to negotiate with the affected ex-staff of PGL to allow for the Public Hearing without success. Bogoso Mine tactfully succeeded in getting the Moslem communities to her side. So, with their support, the Public Forum on the Environmental Impact Assessments Report with related remedies including Community Social Responsibilities was presented to the chiefs and people of the affected areas. This was done under the protection of the security personnel.

It ended successfully hence, the Company acquired her operational social license. But some assailants including the disgruntled former workers and some Galamasey operators and their associates suddenly attacked some of the management of Golden Star Bogoso, the members of EPA and other external participants of the Forum at the outskirt of Prestea and burned a van of GBC. This was when they were departing from Prestea. The Soldiers and the Police had to fire shots or warning shots into the air and managed to extricate the participants of the Forum to escape to Bogoso.

The acquisition of the social license paved the way for the entry of Bogoso Mine into the Prestea and further compounded the security situation at Prestea.

To sum up, as stated above, the REGSEC inserted personnel from the Police and the Military in the location of the Mining Companies in 2001. With a new Administration in 2009 under the Presidency of President Mills, so a new Police Administration with a new IGP were organized and appointed respectively. The new Police Administration had to withdraw their personnel when the Mining Companies refused to meet a demand for not less GHC100.00 per Police personnel per day in addition to the provision of accommodation and three square mills otherwise a withdrawal.

The Mining Companies through, the Ghana Chamber of Mines with my inputs replied to the Police Administration and explained the history on the deployment of the personnel and made it clear that the troops were at their location at their cost for OPERATION CALM LIFE at a bleeding huge cost to them and not for direct security operations and huge cost was incurred on the troops thus cause a debilitating effect on the finances of the Mining Companies hence the Companies were willing to sustain the operation at the current cost. Due to the Companies refusal to meet the unrealistic demands of the Police, the Police personnel were made to withdraw and left only the Military troops.

In 2015, the National Security Secretariat and the Army Command could not fathom the continuance of the stay of the troops in the location of the Mining Companies and no Policemen with them for the OPERATION CALM LIFE in the affected areas.

So, Brigadier General Dan Mishio, on secondment to the National Security Secretariat at Castle Annex termed as the Blue Gate, was appointed as the Chief Operations Officer at the National Security Secretariat arranged a meeting and met the Chamber of Mines Security Committee, made of Heads of security of Mining Companies. This was at Golden Star Wassa Mine on a fact finding mission on matters on the genesis of the deployment of the troops in the location of the Mining Companies and others.

He was briefed with the facts or the history on how the troops especially personnel got deployed in the location of Mining Companies, at the instance of REGSEC for restoration and maintenance of law and order and not at the instance of the Mining Companies as perceived.

He was briefed on the very good work of the troops in the various Districts by helping in checking banditry activities within the areas of the internal security responsibilities of the Ghana Army, due to the benevolence of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, thus reduce cost of OPERATION CALM to the Ghana Armed Forces and that only they afforded minimum protection to the their Sites, due to their visible presence on their Sites among other good reasons. So it was/is a very good way in position the Military personnel to be close by to support the Police in Internal Security Operations.

So based on the explanations of the Ghana Chamber of Mines, he indicated that the Army Command through him felt the need for Status of troops Engagement or Memorandum of understanding concerning the troops in their locations. These include the Dos and Don’ts as well as the admin and logistic support for the guards to ensure high morale; this led to the Signing of the Pact between the Ghana Army and the Ghana of Chamber of Mines.

Recommendations.
The Mining Sector is a strategic sector of the Country’s economy since it is one of the economy sectors that provides the largest share of revenue by way of taxes etc and contribution of foreign exchange inflows provision of 24 hour economy for both direct in-house staff and indirect staff of some of the contractors as well as support to local businesses through local content policy.

Mr Ibrahim Mahama, the founder and CEO of Engineers and Planners rose from a very low beginning to the current affluent level at the back of the Large Scale Mining Companies especially Goldfields Ghana and Golden Star Wassa Mine, the baby of Golden Star Bogoso Mine. A lot of Ghanaians also became affluent through the Large Scale Mining Companies. So all of them and their contributions to the National Economy through economy improvement by financially, provision of employment/development and inclusive growth for Ghana. Thus the Mining Sector contributes greatly to the stability and security of Ghana.

Thus the importance of the Large Scale Mining Companies in the mining industry to the economy and some support for the protection of the environment from activities of both Galamasey operators and illegal miners and others have made the mining sector as one of the number one priority of the National economy as well as the Regional and National Security systems. Hence, the Military personnel with the Mining Companies must be retained.

So, the Memorandum to provide protection for both life and property hence as well as against armed illegal miners and other activities was a good one. It covered 20 Mining Companies. Due to the accusation of acts of corruption against the first Regime of President Mahama, the high echelons of the Ghana Army, and the Ghana Chamber of Mines in connection with the deployment of the soldiers, made the regime of President Nana Addo to withdraw the troops, in 2017.

So, the Ghana Chambers of Mines made a strong case against the withdrawal of the troop. This done through its President, namely Mr Eric Asobonteng, the MD of AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi. .